The Love Conundrum
by mabelreid
Summary: One Shot AU set in the summer between CM season 11 and 12 and TBBT season 9-10. Sheldon writes a paper on his experience with coitus and Amy isn't happy. Spencer shows up at a lecture Amy gives after visiting his mother and the two have a discussion about Sheldon and his paper.


**_Disclaimer: see my profile._**

 ** _A/n this is an AU crossover with TBBT and Criminal Minds. In my universe, Sheldon and Spencer know each other from school and remain friends. Please enjoy this offering._**

 _It was good to be back_ ; Spencer thought as he watched other students gather their laptops and shuffle toward the classroom doors. He considered the possibility of beginning another degree, then decided he had enough on his plate with his mother, and getting used to life at the BAU without Morgan. He sighed and stood. He'd ducked into this lecture on a whim because of the speaker, and hadn't, as he'd expected, been disappointed.

The classroom rapidly emptied until he stood alone at the bottom of the stairs that led to stadium-like seating in the room. The lecturer gathered together her notes with the air of someone distracted and just a little uptight about her surroundings. "Um," he cleared his throat and smiled when she looked up at him. "Hello, Amy."

"Spencer," she exclaimed, and her eyes lit up from behind her glasses. "What a pleasant surprise."

The woman in front of him wore a green cardigan over a light blue buttoned shirt and a dark blue skirt. Her shoes were sensible and dark brown that nearly matched the color of her hair and eyes.

"I took an extra week off. My mother isn't doing that well, but I decided to come out to California for a few days.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

He smiled sadly. "There's nothing I can do to change her condition. All I can do is see her as often as I can and love her."

They were awkwardly silent for a moment until Spencer realized there was something in her eyes that concerned him. "What's wrong, Amy?"

"It's nothing important. In fact, I don't want to talk about it."

"If that's what you want. In any case, I thought you did an excellent job." He gestured around the lecture hall. "Your work in addiction and your resulting conclusions are groundbreaking."

"Thank you, Spencer."

Another awkward moment passed, and Spencer sighed. "I thought we were friends, Amy."

"We are, but I don't –"She went to one of the chairs and sat. "It's Sheldon."

"What did he do this time?"

"It's too humiliating to speak of," she said and folded her hands in her lap.

"Why don't we get out of here and get coffee," he suggested. "You'll feel better if you talk about it."

"Is that the profiler speaking?" She asked as she rose back to her feet.

He shrugged. "Whatever works."

She pushed her glasses up on her nose and frowned. "I think getting out of here is an excellent idea. "

"No," said a voice from the doorway. "You can't," Sheldon interrupted.

Spencer turned to see Amy's boyfriend standing just inside the door. He wore a green tee shirt with the "Green Lantern," symbol on the front and over a long sleeved purple shirt and blue pants. He also wore a scowl that he directed at Spencer.

Reid sighed and slung his messenger bag over his shoulder. "Amy, perhaps I better go."

"Yes, please go." Sheldon spat out. "Amy and I have a previously agreed upon engagement."

"We did," Amy admitted, "But as I'm not speaking to you right now, I'm taking Spencer up on his offer of coffee and what promises to be stimulating conversation."

Sheldon's mouth firmed, and he turned his narrowed eyes to Spencer. "I should have known. _Spencer!_ " He all but spat out Reid's name as if it were an epitaph.

"Hello, Sheldon. How are you?"

"Please spare me the niceties and explain your pathetic attempt to seduce my girlfriend."

"What?" Spencer said incredulously. "I'm not attempting a seduction. Both of you are my friends, Sheldon. Why would I try to get between you?"

"Because you've always tried to best me in every way. I will not _stand_ for it."

"Stop it! Both of you," Amy demanded, her eyes going hard and angry. "Spencer asked me for coffee, and I'm saying yes, Sheldon. If you have a problem with that, you should've thought about that before you wrote that paper. You completely humiliated me. How could you right before this lecture? You knew how much it meant to me."

"You know it wasn't my intention to embarrass you," he said as he went to her side and proceeded to ignore Spencer.

"The problem is that you don't think, Sheldon. You took something intimate and beautiful between us and turned it into a cold and clinical scientific study. How could you do that?"

"Um, I think I'll let you two work this out," Spencer said as the two just stared at each other.

"NO!" Amy nearly shouted. "Thank you for your offer, Spencer. I'd love to have coffee and conversation that doesn't involve a certain person who shall not be named."

With that, she grabbed Reid's arm and pulled him toward the door. "Sheldon," he said after planting his feet and stopping his forward momentum despite her yanking on his arm impatiently.

"No," Sheldon waved them off. "Just go, Spencer. Once again, you win the day."

"That's not what – "

"Don't listen to him," Amy interrupted again and this time there were tears in her eyes. "Please just let's go."

He took another look at Sheldon, shrugged when the other man refused eye contact and left the room with Amy.

TBBTBBTBBTBBTBBT

The coffee shop just off the Cal-Sci campus reminded him of a place he liked to frequent at Quantico. It was small, and quiet with forest green placemats that matched the window coverings. There were hardwood floors and soft lighting. Even in the middle of the day, it managed to convey a sense of early evening in its atmosphere. They went to a corner table and sat. He found he couldn't think of anything to say to Amy, and she kept her eyes on the placemats.

"Spencer," she began.

"Yes, Amy."

"I'm sorry about Sheldon. You know how can be…" She trailed off and then said. "No, I'm not apologizing for him."

He sipped at his coffee and thought about all the times in his life he'd misinterpreted something someone had said or done, especially in the early days at the BAU.

"I do understand. Sheldon doesn't find it easy to read social situations and react appropriately. I have the same problem, at times."

"I don't believe that," Amy shook her head. "You seem much more socially adept."

"I am, but I've spent the last decade as a profiler."

"He has grown," Amy said. "He's much better than when we met five years ago."

"He has changed from the time I met him as a student here, but the truth is that he's very much the child prodigy who never grew into his emotional intelligence. I feel sorry for him."

"I _don't_ feel sorry for him," Amy countered. "I'm feeling homicidal at this moment."

"What did he do that's so awful?"

She sighed and sipped the tea she'd ordered. "He's the most insensitive, shallow and selfish person I've ever met. What would you think," she said loudly, then lowered her voice when several people turned to look at them. "What would you think if someone you loved wrote a paper on coitus and used you as a case study?"

Reid's eyebrows went into his hair. "Sadly, I can't say that surprises me about Sheldon."

A tear slid out of Amy's left eye, and she wiped it away impatiently. "I thought he changed," she almost wailed, then lowered her voice again. "We've dated for five years, and I was so happy when he finally said he wanted to – well I'm sure you figured it out for yourself."

"I think I understand."

"It was the most amazing night of my life, and he turns it into a scientific paper, and someone decides to publish it. Everyone knows, Spencer. I'm humiliated and worse; my credibility's in question.

He watched her face go bright red and shoved down the urge to say something trite and meaningless. Instead, he said. "Did he use your name, Amy?"

"What?"

She regarded him with the same attitude he'd seen when he'd played devil's advocate with a friend, and they didn't appreciate it.

"Did he use your name in the study?"

"Well, no, but all our friends and the faculty at Cal-Sci know who he meant. He's never had coitus with anyone but me, Spencer. It's not a stretch to think they'd deduce he'd written about us."

"Amy, everyone you mentioned knows Sheldon. They understand that he doesn't have tact or that he'd consider how this would affect you. They're not judging you. In fact, I'll bet they're wondering about what he was thinking when he wrote the paper. I'm sure they feel terrible for you."

She heaved out another breath and finally gave him a small smile. "I suppose you're right, but what am I going to do. How do I face them?"

"I think Sheldon's the one that will need to worry about how to face his friends. They'll judge him, not you and he'll have to deal with it."

She sipped again at her tea and shook her head. "I hope you're right."

"Be patient with him," Spencer encouraged. "He has the capacity within himself to be a good and kind man, Amy."

"Why do you believe in him? You've known him for him for years. You know what he's like."

"I guess I see myself in him," Spencer admitted. "I've been blessed with the opportunities to leave my shell and interact with all walks of life. I've been forced to learn how to deal with other people. Sheldon's been cocooned in academia all of his life. We live in different worlds."

"What do I do?" Amy asked quietly. "I want to forgive him, but I'm so angry."

"I don't blame you, but I do know that he loves you very much. I can see it when he looks at you."

"Really?"

His heart gave a little thump at her obvious insecurities, and he silently cursed his friend. No matter the emotional difficulties Sheldon had it was no excuse for his behavior.

"I think you should talk to him."

She shook her head. "No, Spencer. I'm going home, and I'm going to shut off my phone and try to get some of the sleep I missed last night."

He stood up as she got to her feet. "I can speak to him for you if you prefer."

"No," she stopped him with a hand to his wrist. "Please don't say anything to him. I'll deal with it."

"If that's what you want. Don't delay, Amy. Life is much too short."

hSe kissed his cheek. "Thank you for being my friend, too, Spencer."

"You're welcome. Give him another chance," he asked.

"I'll think about it."

TBBTBBTBBTBBTBBTBBTBBTBBTBBT

It had started to rain on her walk back to her apartment and by the time she arrived, she was soaked to the skin. She shivered as she put the key in the lock and opened the door. Because of the blinds over the kitchen window, the gloom in the small room didn't reveal the person sitting on her sofa. She flipped on the lights and jumped when she saw Sheldon. "What are you doing here?"

"You gave me a key, if you recall."

"So you decide to show up without telling me."

"Yes. I wanted to speak to you."

She pulled off her shoes and removed her soaked sweater. "It's raining, Sheldon. I want to get out of these clothes. Please leave."

She didn't wait for him to vacate her apartment. Instead, she hurried past him to her bedroom. She barely made it into the shower before she began to cry. All of the humiliation and the stress of her day closed in on her, and she sobbed as the hot water beat down on her shoulders and clattered to the tub. The water ran cold when she stepped out and hot anger once again burned in her gut. She toweled off and wrapped into her favorite robe. She'd make more tea and go to bed even though it was the middle of the afternoon.

All of her plans blew apart when she entered the living room because Sheldon remained on the sofa. She clenched her hands into fists and shoved them in her pockets. "I told you to leave."

"I can't, Amy. I don't understand what I did to make you so angry."

"Seriously, Sheldon. You don't understand why your latest paper enrages me." She spat out sarcastically. "I can see why."

"Amy, I didn't write that paper to humiliate you."

"Then why _did_ you write it?" She demanded. " _Did_ you think about me at all?"

He bowed his head for a moment and in the false twilight of the rainy day and the golden light of her living room he looked like a lost little boy and her heart stuttered.

"I was only thinking of you, Amy."

"I don't believe you, Sheldon. If you were thinking of me, you wouldn't have written about us. What we did in this apartment, in _my_ bed, was for us alone. You turned our most intimate moments into something cold and clinical. I don't know if I can forgive you for that."

"Amy, will you come sit with me, please."

She tried to ignore the plea in his voice and eyes, but gave in because she didn't have the energy to stay angry and to argue.

"I wrote that paper because I don't know how to be in love with you."

"I don't understand what you're trying to say."

He sighed and slipped his hand over hers, and held on when she tried to pull away from him. "I never understood love. My Paw Paw was a difficult man, but my Me-Maw loved him despite his faults. My mom and dad fought all the time, and I never understood how they could claim to love each other when they treated each other in such a way. I began to think that love was just something people said to each other, not something they felt. Love is illogical and irrational, and it makes people do unspeakable things."

"Are you trying to push me away because you're afraid that one day I'll do something terrible to you?"

"No, at least not now. I decided to write about us because I thought I could understand love as a real and tangible emotion, not as an abstract concept. I thought if I did research, I could make it something outside of all the irrationality I've seen."

She squeezed his hand and lay her head on his shoulder. "I think I'm starting to understand."

"I hope that you do because I discovered that it doesn't matter if love and the act of love are messy and illogical. I can't imagine my life without you in it, Amy. I love you more than anything or anyone in my life. If that means I'm confused and out of my comfort zone, then so be it."

"I wish you'd just talked to me," Amy said after a while.

"I should have," he agreed. "I am sorry if I embarrassed you. I did not intend for you to be humiliated."

She reached up and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "At least you used a different name for me. Thank you for that."

"You're welcome."

He wrapped her into his arms, and she closed her eyes. "I'm still mad at you."

"I understand."

She smiled even though he couldn't see it. "What do you think about staying the night, Sheldon. I know it's not my birthday, but I think we need a little more intimacy."

"I believe you're trying to punish me."

She laughed and jumped when a thunderclap boomed overhead. "I think you deserve it, don't you agree."

He sighed as she pulled him to his feet. "I believe the next time I pick a subject for a paper, I'll think more carefully about the consequences."

She laughed. "Then my job is done."

TBBTBBTBBTBBTBBTBBT

Later, Amy returned to her room with two cups of tea. "I don't normally drink tea in bed," Sheldon said.

"You're the one that wants new experiences."

He pulled her comforter over both of them after she removed her robe and climbed back into bed. The rain continued to pour down, although she could hardly hear it through the walls of her apartment. Still, she shivered and curled into Sheldon's arms.

"What did you discuss with Spencer?"

She sighed then laughed. "You want to talk about Spencer after coitus."

"Why not, he's not here," Sheldon pointed out.

"I'm extremely grateful for that," Amy said. "I only mean that he's a strange topic for a post-coital talk."

"I only wanted to know if you talked about us to him."

"I told him why I was angry with you. He told me to talk to you."

"Good," was all that Sheldon said.

"Sheldon Cooper. Are you jealous of Spencer?"

"No, of course not. I only wanted to know what you discussed."

"We talked about you. He's a great friend. You should call him and apologize for the way you treated him."

Sheldon shook his head. "He'd think I was trying to – how does it go – pull the wool over his eyes. Although I don't see what pulling the wool over someone's eyes has to go with fooling them, but –"

"I know what you mean," she interrupted. "He's your friend. You have to try."

"I will if it means so much to you, Amy."

"I just want you to have friends other than Leonard, Raj, and Howard."

"Why? I thought you like them."

"I do. They're your best friends, but you need other friends as well. Spencer knows you from when you were a teenager. He understands you better than most people."

"Alright, I'll call him tomorrow."

"Good, because he's here for a week. We can have lunch."

"Perhaps you know someone that could join us, a date for Spencer."

"You _are_ jealous. That's so sweet."

He reached over and turned off the light, plunging them into complete darkness. "I think I want to sleep."

She managed to find his lips for another kiss. "Why don't I show you how much I love you and how little I'm thinking about Spencer Reid."


End file.
